Rabin: Israel Will Seal Borders, Hit at Terrorist Bases, Equip Citizens in War Against Terrorism

July 17, 1974

JERUSALEM (Jul. 16)

Premier Yitzhak Rabin declared here today that Israel would seek to close off its borders and thereby prevent terrorist infiltration, while at the same time “organizing the rear, throughout the depth of the country, to resist any incursions which do succeed in penetrating the borders.” In addition. Rabin said, the government’s policy would be to conduct active measures to “disrupt, endanger and hit at the terrorist murderers wherever they are.” Rabin spoke in the Knesset to wind up last week’s debate on the Horev Commission report on Maalot.

In an apparent reference to the disputes and controversies to which the report has given rise, the Premier said his government (which had not appointed the Commission and which was not the subject of its inquiry) would not set itself up as an inquiry into the inquiry. It had accepted the Commission’s recommendations, had already implemented some of them, and was preparing to implement the others. Rabin stressed that terrorism was not the most dangerous threat facing Israel, Israel must be on its guard in case a new military confrontation was forced upon it by the Arab states, he declared, in obvious response to recent warlike noises emanating from Cairo.

Defense Minister Shimon Peres had told the Knesset yesterday that 30 infiltrating terrorists had been killed and five taken prisoner by the army during the first six months of this year. Replying to Parliamentary questions, the Minister said 507 persons had been detained under administrative order in the West Bank during the same period, and another 304 in the Gaza Strip.